


Nearly Light

by smaragdbird



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Father-Son Relationship, Getting Together, Getting to Know Each Other, Kes bonds with his future son-in-law, M/M, Waiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-18
Updated: 2017-12-18
Packaged: 2019-02-16 19:11:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13060338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smaragdbird/pseuds/smaragdbird
Summary: Poe's Squadron is late returning from a mission and Finn cannot sleep because he worries about Poe.He's not the only one.Kes, having recently joined the Resistance at Leia's request, is waiting for his son to come home as well.So they wait and talk.





	Nearly Light

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [this ](https://tfa-kink.dreamwidth.org/3467.html?thread=7449483#cmt7449483) prompt

Thirty years ago Kes had quit the Rebellion for a reason and it had been a good reason. But now that the First Order had destroyed the peace he and Shara and their friends had fought so hard for, they needed all hands on deck. When Leia had asked him to come back and train the ground troops, he hadn’t hesitated. 

It also meant that he was closer to Poe again and where he had sat up all night waiting for Shara thirty years ago he was now waiting for his son to come back.

“Can’t sleep?” Kes asked when Finn shuffled into the lounge.

“It’s too quiet without BB8 and Poe around”, Finn confessed and poured himself a cup of caf. He looked at Kes and asked, “Do you want one too?”

Kes held up his own mug. “I’ve got enough, thanks.”

“You didn’t hear anything either, did you?” Finn asked. He looked worried and Kes only knew that expression too well. 

He shook his head. “Only that they’re late.”

Finn nodded and took a sip of his caf. “Poe always tells me not to worry but I do it anyway.”

“He’s exactly like his mother”, Kes said. “Shara had the same casual attitude to danger. Attacking an Imperial Fleet with three outdated star fighters? No problem. Walking right into an Imperial high-security lab with nothing than a blaster and a Jedi? Just another day in the Rebel Alliance.” 

Finn smiled a little. “Sounds just like Poe.”

“It’s not easy, waiting for someone to come home.”

“At least he has BB8 with him this time. He worries about Poe just as much as I do, especially after Jakku.”

“That’s where you met, isn’t it?” Kes knew it was. Poe had told him the story how Finn had rescued him about a dozen times.

“Technically, I mean I was aware the First Order had taken a prisoner but I was too busy freaking out. It was my first battle. I only really met him on board of the Finalizer. I thought he was my best bet to get away from the First Order. And even then we only knew each other for maybe 20 minutes before we crashed and I thought he was dead.” Finn pulled a little at the jacket he was wearing. Kes recognised as Poe’s favourite jacket. Only it had two patches now. One at the front and one along the back.

“You saved his life”, Kes said.

Finn squirmed a little. “Poe keeps saying that too but that’s not why…I did it more for me than I did it for him.”

“You still saved him”, Kes insisted.

Finn shrugged. “It was awful, thinking he was dead. I can’t imagine what it would feel like now.”

„You never get used to having your friends die around you while you’re stuck doing nothing”, Kes replied. 

“I mean I worry about Rey too. But she has powers. She has the Force that can warn her or something. I’m not sure how it actually works”, Finn added with a sheepish smile. “But Poe…he has nothing like that. Makes me wish I was a pilot too so I could be up there with him and protect him.” Finn stared at his mug of caf. “Stormtroopers don’t wonder about the future. Because we know it’s the same as our present and our past. But now I could have one. And wondering if Poe will be there in the future with me or not…that’s what keeps me awake.”

Kes knew what he was talking about. Thirty years ago he went through the same fears, the same agonizing uncertainty if Shara would return from a mission or not. But at least back then he and Shara had been together. Even when Shara had died too soon he had his memories of their time together, he had Poe to remember her by. Whereas he was pretty sure that Finn and Poe didn’t know yet that they each felt the same for each other.

“When he comes back”, Kes said, “You should tell him that.”

“I’ve been meaning to. The timing just never seemed right.”

“It never is”, Kes told him. “Tell him anyway.”

/

Kes and Finn made it through a lot of topics that night. But every time there was a lull in their conversation, the time still didn’t seem to have moved on. Other people came in, others left to try and get some sleep. An unexpectedly overdue routine mission was never a good sign and so most people stayed, waiting for news.

The sun was already creeping over the horizon when the news came that the starfigher corps had dropped out of hyperspace. Within the blink of an eye a room of sleepy people transformed into a wide awake force, especially when additional information revealed that the corps had wounded pilots and damaged ships.

Since neither Finn nor Kes were mechanics, transporter pilots or medics, they hung back to keep out of everyone’s way. Black One was obviously damaged but it was still flying under its own power and when Poe climbed out he looked mostly unharmed. 

Poe grinned when he saw his father and waved to let him know that he had seen him. Finn had been found by Rey who despite being officially a Jedi was apparently as good of a pilot as Luke had been back then. Kes watched with a smile as she talked to Finn, her hands flying through the air like birds as she undoubtly told him about her mission.

“Hey dad”, Poe said and hugged him. “Did you stay up all night?” He asked when he saw the rings under Kes’s eyes.

“Wasn’t the only one. “Kes yawned. “Couldn’t leave my future son in law waiting alone, could I?”

“Your….you mean Finn?”

“Of course I mean Finn.” Kes couldn’t remember that he or Shara had been this oblivious about each other. He wondered where his son had gotten it from. “Don’t be stupid, Poe. You’re fighting a war. Even if one of you won’t make it out alive the memories are worth it. Don’t waste time you don’t have.”

“I didn’t think he felt the same”, Poe said quietly. He looked to find Finn’s face in the crowd and when he did it was as if all other people ceased to exist. 

Kes pushed him a little. “Go to him.”

He watched as Poe made his way to Finn, watched them hug and how Poe’s hand caught Finn’s sleeve when they let go. Kes couldn’t hear what Poe was saying but he didn’t need to. The smile that was spreading on Finn’s face was telling enough.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me [ here](http://smaragdbird.tumblr.com/) on tumblr


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